The late 19th and early 20th centuries saw sweeping social change and major scientific advances — both of which contributed to a new aesthetic: modernism. Rejecting the rigidity of Victorian artistic conventions, modernists sought a new means of expression. References to the natural world and ornate classical embellishments gave way to the sleek simplicity of the Machine Age. Architect Philip Johnson characterized the hallmarks of modernism as “machine-like simplicity, smoothness or surface [and] avoidance of ornament.”
Early practitioners of modernist design include the De Stijl (“The Style”) group, founded in the Netherlands in 1917, and the Bauhaus School, founded two years later in Germany.
Followers of both groups produced sleek, spare designs — many of which became icons of daily life in the 20th century. The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics. While Bauhaus principals Marcel Breuer and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe created furniture from mass-produced, chrome-plated steel, American visionaries like Charles and Ray Eames worked in materials as novel as molded plywood and fiberglass. Today, Breuer’s Wassily chair, Mies van der Rohe’s Barcelona chair — crafted with his romantic partner, designer Lilly Reich — and the Eames lounge chair are emblems of progressive design and vintage originals are prized cornerstones of collections.
It’s difficult to overstate the influence that modernism continues to wield over designers and architects — and equally difficult to overstate how revolutionary it was when it first appeared a century ago. But because modernist furniture designs are so simple, they can blend in seamlessly with just about any type of décor. Don’t overlook them.
$334Sale Price / item|20% Off
Nomon Micro Eslabon Wall Clock By Andres Martinez
Located in Brooklyn, NY
CLOCKS WITH GREAT PERSONALITY AND A CONTEMPORARY DESIGN, REINTERPRETING THE CLASSIC PENDULUM CLOCK. Available in Walnut and Oak
Brass
$8,097 / item
Protopunk Clock 01
By Joost van Bleiswijk, Kiki & Joost
Located in Eindhoven, NL
Protopunk is a collection of furniture and objects designed by Joost Van Bleiswijk. Each piece is handmade with thick cuts of steel roughly cut with a torch, welded together and then...
Cut Steel
$1,994 / item
Floating Frames Mantel Clock Brass and Sandblasted
By Kiki van Eijk, Kiki & Joost
Located in Eindhoven, NL
Kiki van Eijk designed floating frames as a collection of handmade objects in anodized aluminum wire. Each piece is meticulously handmade in her workshop; no two items are alike. ...
Brass
$1,971 / item
Floating Frames Mantel clock Copper Oxidized
By Kiki van Eijk, Kiki & Joost
Located in Eindhoven, NL
Kiki van Eijk designed floating frames as a collection of handmade objects in anodized aluminium wire. Each piece is meticulously handmade in her workshop; no two items are alike. ...
Copper
$1,924 / item
Floating Frames Mantel clock Brass
By Kiki van Eijk, Kiki & Joost
Located in Eindhoven, NL
Kiki van Eijk designed Floating Frames as a collection of handmade objects in anodized aluminium wire. Each piece is meticulously handmade in her workshop; no two items are alike. ...
Brass
$1,971 / item
Floating Frames Mantel clock Copper Nickel-Plated
By Kiki van Eijk, Kiki & Joost
Located in Eindhoven, NL
Kiki van Eijk designed Floating Frames as a collection of handmade objects in anodized aluminium wire. Each piece is meticulously handmade in her workshop; no two items are alike. ...
Nickel
$617 / item
Floating Frames Mantel clock Red
By Kiki & Joost, Kiki van Eijk
Located in Eindhoven, NL
Kiki van Eijk designed Floating Frames as a collection of handmade objects in anodized aluminium wire. Each piece is meticulously handmade in her workshop; no two items are alike. ...
Aluminum
$1,994 / item
Floating Frames Mantel clock Copper Sand Blasted
By Kiki & Joost, Kiki van Eijk
Located in Eindhoven, NL
Kiki van Eijk designed Floating Frames as a collection of handmade objects in anodized aluminium wire. Each piece is meticulously handmade in her workshop; no two items are alike. Sh...
Copper
$1,452Sale Price / item|20% Off
Nomon Colgante Wall Clock By Andres Martinez
Located in Brooklyn, NY
ø30cm and length of 79cm clock. Metal curved rod in brass or black finish, and hands made of walnut and polished brass or painted black. Installation to wall or ceiling. Availab...
Brass
Porsche Design Titan Chronograph by IWC ref. 3700 series
Located in Mérida, YU
This is a original very collectable IWC Porche Design Titanium Automatic Men's Watch. Swiss Manufacture 42 mm Mechanical Movement. Calibre 7750. Year 1980. PORSCHE DESIGN TITAN CHR...
Other
Micro Eslabón Wall Clock by Nomon, Graphite Brass & Walnut Design
By Nomon
Located in NEW YORK, NY
The Micro Eslabón wall clock has been made with a graphite finish brass ring and a walnut or oak case. Micro Eslabón wall clock :Ring and hour hand in polished brass or in graphite ...
Brass
Colgante Walnut Wall Clock by Nomon - Modern Wood & Brass Design
By Nomon
Located in NEW YORK, NY
The Colgante Walnut is a sophisticated wall clock that is suspended from a curved metal rod finished in polished or black brass. Colgante Walnut Wall Clock : The Case is made of Wal...
Brass
Porsche Design Titan Chronograph by IWC ref. 3700 series
Located in Mérida, YU
This is a original very collectable IWC Porche Design Titanium Automatic Men's Watch. Swiss Manufacture 42 mm Mechanical Movement. Calibre 7750. Year 1980. PORSCHE DESIGN TITAN CHR...
Other
Italian modern Black metal Floor clock with eye-shape mirror by Alias, 1990s
By Alias
Located in MIlano, IT
Italian modern Black metal and plastic Floor clock with eye-shape mirror by Alias, 1990s Floor clock with rear-view mirror in metal and plastic. The structure of the clock is eye-sha...
Metal
Clessidra Hourglass in Bamboo and Aquamarine Glass by Venini
By Venini
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Perfectly balanced between two different colours, the sand flows through the sleek glass chambers made using the Incalmo technique, taking on its colour an...
Glass
Tempus Obsidian: Illuminating Wall Watch
By Ben Rousseau
Located in Timisoara, RO
Tempus: Timepiece The Tempus Is Not Merely A Timekeeping Device; It Is A Kinetic Art Piece. The Darkened Reflections Of Its Surroundings In The Obsidian Create A Dynamic Interplay O...
Brass
$1,232Sale Price / item|20% Off
Nomon Look Wall Clock By Andres Martinez
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Large luxury wall clock that imitates an eye. An artisan clock with a black fiber hoop with a central case and walnut needles. The Nomon Look ...
Brass
Tempus - Emperor : Illuminating Watch
By Ben Rousseau
Located in Timisoara, RO
Tempus: Emperor "Tempus - Emperor" By Ben Rousseau Is A Masterful Blend Of Contemporary Design And Functional Art, Drawing Inspiration From The Timeless ...
Brass
21st Century by Elda Lippi "OROLOGIO 6" Marble Clock
Located in massa, IT
Marble clock designed by Arch. Elda Lippi Size: cm. 12 x 12 x 6 H. Materials: Bianco Carrara - Nero Marquina - Pietra serena - Pietra dorata.
Marble